


The Wrong One

by Huntress79



Category: Star Trek: The Next Generation
Genre: Data & Jean-Luc Picard friendship, Electrical Storms, Gen, Mistaken Identity, Misunderstandings, evil twin
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-21
Updated: 2021-01-21
Packaged: 2021-03-13 07:21:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,717
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28899576
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Huntress79/pseuds/Huntress79
Summary: While exploring a small planet near the Neutral Zone, Data gets mistaken for his evil twin Lore - which means danger for all members of the expedition, including Captain Picard. Add a potential dangerous meteorological phenomen, an injured space cadet and no way to contact the Enterprise, and you got the (almost) perfect drama.
Relationships: Data & Jean-Luc Picard
Comments: 7
Kudos: 5
Collections: Star Trek New Year Exchange 2021





	The Wrong One

**Author's Note:**

  * For [friendoftheJabberwock](https://archiveofourown.org/users/friendoftheJabberwock/gifts).



> written for the Star Trek New Year Exchange and friendoftheJabberwock. Set in no specific season, but after the first Lore episode and before the TNG movies. Enjoy!!

*********************

“Captain, you think it’s a good idea to go to the planet yourself?”

“Number One…,” Captain Jean-Luc Picard began, only to be interrupted by both Lt. Worf and Dr. Crusher.

“Captain, with all due respect, we know nothing about the planet. For all we know, it could hold any imaginable kind of trap, not to mention the traps we haven’t encountered so far,” the Klingon security officer spoke up.

“I agree with Lt. Worf,” Beverly continued, worry written all over her face. “And before you say it, Jean-Luc, I also know that you want to explore the rock formations we saw on the probe. Still, I think it would be better to send a small explorer team down, to get a lay of the land, so to speak, before you go down there yourself.”

“Counselor?” Picard turned to Deanna.

“I…,” the Half-Betazoid began, then stopped and took a deep breath. “I see nothing wrong in you following your plan, but I also have to agree with the arguments Lt. Worf and Dr. Crusher have brought up. So, to compromise, I only ask you to be very careful, Captain.”

“Thank you, Counselor. Number One, you have the bridge.”

With that, Picard got up and left the room, eager to get to the transporter room as quickly as possible.

*********************

Based on the preliminary scans and pictures from the probe, the exploration team landed in a wide, rather flat valley, surrounded on three sides by high, snow-capped mountains.

“Captain,” Space Cadet Johnson spoke up, “according to my readings, the air resembles that back on Earth,” she looked down on the display of her tricoder, “though the oxygen saturation is tad higher than on Terra Firma.”

“She’s correct,” Data agreed from across the landing, crouched down at the bank of the river dividing the valley, “the same goes, apparently, for the water.”

“So what does that mean?” Picard asked. Not that he was extremely worried about the natural conditions surrounding them, but it still left him curious.

“I don’t know, Sir,” Data replied, rising to his full height. “If I were to make an assumption, I would see no harm in a prolonged stay here for all of us.”

“That’s what I wanted to hear, Mr. Data.” Picard gave the android a nod before turning to the other parties of the expedition. “We need to make the most of the remaining daylight, so please do your jobs.”

*********************

About an hour later, Captain Picard and Data were at one of the rock formations they had seen on the probe, marveling about the many various layers in front of them, when al of a sudden, Cadet Johnson let out a scream, followed by the sound of several firearms being unlocked.

Readying their phasers, Data and Picard made their way over to where Johnson and Lt. Caldwell had been, only to be stopped in their tracks when one of the men surrounding the two women spotted Data.

“How dare you showing your pale face around here, after everything you’ve done?” he exclaimed, pointing the barrel of his shotgun in the android’s direction.

“Gentlemen…,” Picard began, raising his hands in the universal sign of surrender. “I believe there is a huge misunderstanding happening here. If you lower your weapons, we can talk it out.”

“Who the heck are you?” another man from the group asked, following the example of the other man and pointing his gun towards them, but more in Picard’s direction.

“I’m Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the Federation Ship ‘Enterprise’, and we are peaceful explorers.”

“Federation?” one of the men echoed, confusion written all over his face. “As in Federation of the Stars?”

“Yes, correct,” Picard replied, feeling a little hope blossoming in his chest.

“Lies, Cal, all lies,” the first man cut in. “There’s no such thing as a ‘Federation’, cause there’s no way to the stars. Humans are not meant to be out there, whatever you call it.”

“Liam, it’s space,” the younger man replied. “How would you explain their clothes then? Oh, and look,” he pointed to the communicators on their chests, “I know you have seen this symbol before. Before that strange man showed up.”

“Captain,” Data spoke up next to Picard, voice lowered enough that only the latter could hear him, “if we ever cross paths with Lore again, allow me to dismantle him so thoroughly that he never can be rebuilt again.”

Despite the dire situation at hand, Picard had to smile slightly. Leave it to an android to show the proper amount of anger through a couple of words.

“Granted, Mr. Data,” he finally replied back in the same hushed voice.

“You are way too young to know something like that, Cal,” the booming voice of the first man drew their attention back to their predicament.

“Am I?” Cal challenged. “I know about it because my father told me about it, several times. Are you accusing my father of being a liar?”

“No, of course not,” Liam tried to explain. “But how can it be NOT the same man that brought us all so much pain?” he asked with a headjerk towards Data.

“How about you let them explain, and call a verdict afterwards?” another man suggested, causing several others to nod in agreement.

“And if you would allow us to send the wounded cadet back to the Enterprise to get medical help, I’m willing to stay and answer every single question you have about this strange man,” Picard offered.

“I’m also willing to stay,” Data added, looking each man into the eye. “And I assure I am nothing like that other man, even if I look the same.”

“You’re really here with a spaceship?” Cal asked, curiosity lacing his voice.

“Yes, it’s orbiting the planet as we speak,” Picard explained.

“How come you’re alive up there?” Liam asked next. “We’ve been told by our elders that it’s not where humans are meant to be, ever.”

Right then, a crash of thunder, followed by lightning striking across the skies and into the mountains on the far side of the valley occured.

“Elias,” Liam called out. “Get the men back to the village, and order everyone into the caves.”

“Why?” Picard asked, hurrying after Liam and Cal. “What’s happening?”

“Captain,” Data spoke up, “my tricoder picks up a change in the air. On an atomic level.”

“Meaning?”

“Meaning that once this thunderstorm, or whatever, is right above us, the air is unbreathable for humans.”

“And what about you?” Cal asked, looking at Data.

“I probably can survive outside, but I have no idea what it does to my circuits.”

“What the heck are you?” Liam exclaimed.

“An android. A machine, built by a brilliant scientist to resemble the human form.” Data gave a shrug. “That’s the short version. I can provide more insight, if you want, but I rather do that in a safer location than our current.”

Before any could come up with a reply, Data picked up Cadet Johnson and started to follow the other men towards the village.

*********************

Back on the Enterprise, one couldn’t help but compare the current situation on the bridge with the proverbial calm before the storm.

Everyone was on the edge, somewhat torn between hoping for a smooth sail of the expedtion and ready to spring in action, should the need arise.

“Captain,” Geordi spoke up the moment he stepped out of the turbolift, “have we heard anything from the away team?”

“Not for a while,” Lt. Worf answered instead of Riker.

“Damn it,” Geordi exclaimed, causing both Riker and Worf to first exchange a look then raising an eyebrow towards the ship’s Head of Engineering.

“Care to explain, Lt. La Forge?”

“Of course, Sir.” Geordi went over to one of the terminals on the wall. With a few commands, he had one of the scans of the planet on the monitor. “Data and Lt. Caldwell were able to send me some data from the planet’s surface, both meteorological and geodynamical.”

“And?” Worf prompted, not sure where his colleague was going.

“And, along with the data the probe brought back, I was able to play ‘weatherman’,” Geordi concluded.

“So,” Riker asked, “what’s the forecast?”

“Not good, Sir. Not at all.” Geordi took a deep breath before continuing. “If my calculations are right, the team is in mortal danger. A giant electrical storm, I can’t come up with a better name for it, is heading directly to where we beamed them down.”

“But that doesn’t explain the loss of communication,” Riker threw in.

“Except it does, Sir,” Geordi replied. “Like with a common thunderstorm, the air changes on an atomic level, way before we see the dark clouds. At least that’s how it happens on Earth,” he finished with a sigh.

“So what do we do now?”

“Hope and pray, Captain,” Geordi answered. “Hope that they can find shelter, and pray that they haven’t run into any trouble keeping them from it.”

Letting his head engineer’s words sink in, Riker was silent for a few moments, before he tapped the communicator.

“Captain Riker to Transporter Room: Keep trying to reach the away team’s signals. Once you get any of them, beam them up.”

Only moments later, the voice of Chief O’Brien was heard.

“Aye, Captain. But whatever’s going down on that planet, it makes it damn hard to locate them at all.”

“Keep trying,” Geordi spoke up before sprinting over to the turbolift, “I’m coming down to help you, O’Brien.”

*********************

Back on the planet, the Enterprise team finally had made it to the small village. Only a few houses were standing near a huge wall of rock, but if Picard was a betting man, he would guess that most of the planet’s inhabitants were living inside the mountain instead. Ahead of them, some children were running towards them.

“Papa,” one little girl exclaimed, “why is he back?” She pointed at Data.

Liam took a deep breath before answering. “Sweetie, he just looks like the other man, okay? I don’t know how, but unless he’s a very good actor, he’s not that man.”

Both Data and Picard let out a breath of relief. Maybe they could survive both the storm and the inhabitants’ rage after all.

At long last, they had reached the entryway to one of the larger caves, and Liam made sure that Data was allowed to pass it as well, despite the protests of the guards.

“It looks like they built the whole village inside here,” Cadet Johnson spoke up. “I’ve seen something like that in some of the indigenous dwellings on Earth, Sir.”

“I know,” Picard agreed, “even though I only have seen those on pictures before.”

“What happened to her?” one of the women spoke up from the side.

“I made the mistake of pulling my phaser when your men approached us,” Johnson explained. “Result: gunshot wound to the side. As far as I can tell, no vital organs were hit, but damn, it hurts like hell nonetheless.”

“Let us help you,” the woman suggested. “I’m a healer here in the village. It’s probably not as good as what you are used to, but at least we can make it a bit more bearable.”

“Better than nothing,” Johnson quipped, and in the next moment, two other women grabbed the cadet’s head and feet and carried her over to a small wooden cot.

“Captain,” Lt. Caldwell came up to them, “you realize that we have no way to contact the Enterprise as long as this storm is going on out there?”

“I’m more than aware of that, Lieutenant,” Picard replied, “but there’s nothing we can do right now about it. Just wait and hope it will pass soon.”

Caldwell left, heading over to where Johnson was treated. Data, on the other hand, turned to Picard.

“And what about the other situation, Captain? The Lore situation?”

“I think it’s time to have a serious talk with whoever is the leader here, don’t you think?”

*********************

Several hours later, their situation hadn’t really improved at all.

Especially not for Cadet Johnson. By now, the young woman was feverish, despite the efforts of Ariana and her aides. For some unknown reason, the bullet wound started to infect.

“Cal is it, right?” Picard said as he approached the young man.

“Yes.”

“Any idea how long this storm will go on?”

“I… I don’t know. Can be over in a few minutes, can last for days.” He turned slightly to look Picard in the eye. “To be honest, I’ve never seen such a strong one in my life.”

“Me neither,” the man called Elias added, “and I’m a tad older than Cal.”

“That’s why you’re living here in the caves, right?”

“Yes, at some point, our ancestors grew tired of having to rebuild their homes over and over again, and decided to relocate in here. As you saw, we still have some buildings out there, but they are just used for storage.”

“And as a decoy,” Picard added. “In case strangers come here.”

“Yes, it is,” Elias admitted. “Didn’t help us at all when that pale man showed up with his pale army.”

“Pale army?” Picard echoed.

“Yeah, he came with about twenty of them,” Cal told him,. “All of them just as pale as he was, with some strange wires around their head.”

“What happened then?”

“He selected a couple of our people - men, women, children - and took them with him, threatening us all with immediate death should we try to follow them. Of course we stayed back.” Cal heaved a sigh. “We’ve never seen them since. Or any of the others he took when he returned three more times.”

“Anyone close among them?”

“My eldest brother and my uncle,” Cal replied.

“My wife, my youngest daughter and my sister,” Elias added. “Almost everyone living in here has lost at least one family member to that guy. Have you ever heard of him?”

“Unfortunately, yes,” Picard admitted. “He’s in fact the twin to my subordinate over there, but there’s a significant difference between them.”

“Which is?” Cal prompted, reminding Jean-Luc of Beverly’s son Wesley on a good day.

“Their creator built a so-called ‘emotion chip’ for them, meant for Data to receive at the right time. But Lore, the bad twin, stole it and inserted it into his own system…”

“...which is now unable to work through all of them properly,” Cal continued. “So, you’re saying he’s doing all those horrible things because his brain is overloaded?”

“Simple said, yes,” Picard replied, cringing at the sound of it. “But Lore is more complicated than that. And truth be told, not even Data himself can understand it, not even after sifting through everything their creator has left behind on Lore’s creation.”

“But your android also has the ability to have something akin to human emotions, right?” Elias asked after a few moments of silence.

“Yes, he has, learned it the ‘human’ way. We all try to help him where we can, especially our CMO and Counselor, both exceptional women who care a lot about everyone aboard.”

“And you don’t?” Cal asked, a bit surprised. “Because I have seen the way you stepped into harm’s way when we held you all at gunpoint, and if that’s not a way of caring for your team mates, I don’t know.”

With that, the young man got up and made his way over to where Data and Lt. Caldwell were having dinner.

“Remarkable young man, this Cal,” Picard surmised.

“That he is,” Elias agreed. “Too bad he’s the only one interested in improving our situation. Liam is a good leader, but sometimes, he’s too narrow-sighted to see an opportunity.” He sighed. “I mean, there’s nothing wrong with following the ancestor’s ways, but there’s also nothing wrong with a little bit of improvement once in a while.”

“Elias!” one of the elder kids exclaimed from near the entryway. “Look!”

Picard and Elias got up, like some of the other men around them did, and headed over to where the teenager was standing.

Looking outside, they all felt a weight being lifted they didn’t know they were carrying.

The storm apparently had passed the area, and like before, the sun was shining, and there was no evidence of any destruction.

“Do you think it’s safe to step outside again?” Picard asked Liam.

“Why?”

“Because I need to make contact to our ship and at least try to get professional medical help to Cadet Johnson. What your healer and her team did for her is good and we are eternally grateful for it, but we have technologies on board that can help us save her life.”

“Liam,” Cal said while stepping up to Picard, “for God’s sake, you can’t let an innocent woman die!”

“And I won’t,” Liam replied. “While I’m still not entirely convinced that everything you told us is true,” he said to Picard, “I also have seen that your android might look like the other one, but is the opposite of it as well.” He first looked at Cal, then at Picard. “So, I allow you to contact your ship, and once you have established contact, to leave the planet. With one condition.”

“Which is?” At this point, Picard was willing to do almost everything, if it meant to get everyone on the team to the safety of the Enterprise.

“Never, ever return. Forget that this planet exists at all. We have a peaceful life here, and we would like to keep it that way. Oh, and if you happen to run into that other android, make him pay.”

“I can’t promise you that,” Picard admitted. “Since I promised that my android already,” he added with a light smile. “But what if we happen to find your people?”

“Then, by all means, send them back to us somehow,” Elias told him.

“But truth be told, Captain,” Cal spoke up, “we have no hope to see them again, at least not in this life. Wherever he took them, they are probably better off dead anyway.”

“I hate to say it, Captain,” Data said while coming up behind them, “but Cal is right. Lore is relentless, and we both know what he already has done elsewhere.”

Picard only nodded before stepping outside the entryway, tapping his communicator.

“Captain to Enterprise. Do you read?”

“It’s always a pleasure to hear your voice, Captain,” Riker’s voice came out of the small device. “Truth be told, you had us a bit worried for a while. Everyone alright?”

“Almost everyone,” Picard replied. “We need a medical team in the transporter room, though. Cadet Johnson has been injured and is now sporting a rather high fever.”

“Consider it done, Captain,” Riker replied. “Can’t wait to hear your report, Sir.”

*********************

Two days later, life on the Enterprise resembled its normal way in most aspects. Sure, all the events happened on the planet were still talked about in various departments, but with Cadet Johnson on the mend, things were looking up for all of them.

Following an advice from Counselor Troi after his initial report to the Federation, Picard had retreated to his personal quarters, enjoying a meal that reminded him of dinners with his father, mother and brother, when the doorbell chimed.

“Who’s there?” Picard asked. He didn’t expect anyone dropping by, unless it was an emergency.

“It’s me, Sir,” Data could be heard replying through the door.

“Open,” Picard commanded, and in the next moment, the two panels of the door slid sideways to reveal the android standing outside. “Come in, Mr. Data.”

“Thank you, Sir, and I apologize for dropping by so unexpected.” Picard gestured to the couch under the panorama window, and Data took a seat. “But I’m still mulling, I guess is the proper word for that, over the events on the planet. And I’m not talking about the storm, Sir.”

“Lore,” Picard concluded, sitting down opposite the android.

“Yes, that, but also what you did down there. For me.” Data sat up straight, looking Picard in the eye. “I know that taking me to planets always harbors a risk for the rest of the crew, Sir, but I was actually surprised, or at least something akin to it, that you stood up to me when the inhabitants mistook me for him.”

“It’s what every Starfleet Captain worth his or her stripes would do. Data, we don’t take it too kindly when one of our crew is threatened, in any way.”

“I know that, Sir, it’s in the regulations of Starfleet. And, according to my positronic brain, quite a long part of it.”

“And yet you wonder why I did it for you, right?” Picard prompted, causing Data to give a nod. “You see, I would do it for anyone on this ship, no matter his or her rank.” Another nod. “But you, Data, are still something special to me. Not because you’re an android, or because you are smarter than any of us, but because despite your technological advancement, you want to be human, like the rest of us. You want to be able to feel emotions, no matter how long it takes or how painful acquiring them can be, and even if you stumble along the way, you get up, in the proverbial sense, and try again. And if that’s not a goal for all of us common humans…”

“I… I never saw it that way, Captain,” Data admitted. “Thank you, not only for saving me back down there, but also for explaining it to me. I guess I need to work on understanding how human brains work in terms of reasoning. Maybe Counselor Troi can help me with that.”

“I’m sure she can lend you a hand,” Picard replied with a smile.

“I don’t understand how a hand would help me with figuring out the human brain,” Data said, giving Picard a puzzled look.

“You will understand, Data, some day, that some things aren’t meant to be taken in a literal sense.”

“Oh. Of course, Sir.” The android got up and headed over to the door. “Thank you for your time, Captain, and once again, I apologize for interrupting your spare time. I hope I wasn’t too much of a nuisance, Sir.”

“Not at all, Mr. Data,” Picard replied before the door slided close. “Not at all.”

*********************

The End

*********************


End file.
